BEACH WAR: Madison residents guard beach access

Alexandra Sanders, New Haven Register

Published 12:00 am, Friday, January 21, 2011

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People cook and children play at the campground at Hammonasset Beach State Park in Madison, Conn., Sunday, May 28, 2006. Although Hammonasset and Rocky Neck State Park are well-known to most of the public, many other of the state's 105 state parks, 32 state forests and 19 state beaches are not. The state Department of Environmental Protection is putting on a campaign to educate the public about what is available. (AP Photo/Bob Child) less

People cook and children play at the campground at Hammonasset Beach State Park in Madison, Conn., Sunday, May 28, 2006. Although Hammonasset and Rocky Neck State Park are well-known to most of the public, many ... more

Photo: ASSOCIATED PRESS

BEACH WAR: Madison residents guard beach access

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MADISON -- Even though snow is on the ground, some local residents have the summer, specifically the beaches, on their minds.

Some community members expressed concern about nonresidents using town beaches at a Beach and Recreation Commission meeting this month, and a few who did not attend sent in letters after the meeting.

Their complaints did not go unnoticed.

Selectwoman Noreen Kokoruda said the issue has been going on for years and isn't likely to be solved soon, but Beach and Recreation Commission Director Scot Erskine is planning a workshop in the next month to address residents' worries.

"Some people are saying that they want the beaches to be solely for residents and their guests, because the beach is crowded and parking gets taken up," said Erskine. "Some also said they felt that nonresidents were leaving trash."

By law, the town beaches have to remain open to everyone following an incident in 1995 in which Brenden Leydon, a Connecticut lawyer, was denied access to a town park in Greenwich called Greenwich Point. He wanted to jog along the beach area of the park but was turned away because of a town ordinance that denied access to nonresidents. He filed a lawsuit that prompted the state Supreme Court to rule that a beach should be open to everyone because it could be considered a public forum under the First Amendment.

"The taxpayers would like to see it remain as their beach," said Erskine. "There isn't a lot that we can do. We have to stay within the law, but we are evaluating fees for parking."

The Beach and Recreation Commission can't increase fees to an exorbitant amount; by law, they have to be fair and equitable, said Erskine.

The daily fee at the Surf Club is set at $10 per car for residents, and $25 for nonresidents. By comparison, Hammonasset Beach State Park charges $13 for Connecticut residents, and $22 for nonresidents.

Season passes to the town beach are available only to Madison residents, at a cost of $40 for the first car, and $20 for a second car.

Lucy Bach was one of the residents who spoke about the beaches. Bach said that, two summers ago, towels at the town beach were 3 feet apart, it was very crowded and it was very difficult to find a parking space. While she noticed that things have improved, more can still be done.

"The entrance fee made it quite the come-on for people to go there," she said. "They found a good thing, and it is certainly better than Hammonasset."

Bach said that she had seen residents with beach pass stickers on their cars wait until 17 cars without passes paid to visit the beach for the day.

"Some people have been going there for 40 years, and they were stunned to see that," she said. "People seemed to enter in waves."

While the wait to enter and find a parking spot is a primary issue for some residents, there are usually more people than vehicles because, if people walk, jog or ride a bike, they can avoid the entrance fee.

"We do that to encourage a healthy lifestyle," said Erskine.

If beach visitors come by car, they have to try to fit their entourage in the car that carries the beach pass sticker.

"When our family comes to visit on the Fourth of July, we can't fit everyone in because we have to go with the car that has the sticker," said Bach. "That was difficult because we had to pay for our house guests."

Bach said that while the issue is being handled better than it was in the past, she wants to see nonresidents following the rules.

"Some people come with their dogs, and that is not allowed any time, in season or out of season," she said. "Some of the taxpayers get really irate."

Other than looking at increasing fees, there isn't much else that the Beach and Recreation Commission can change that would deter nonresidents from visiting Madison beaches, but the commission will discuss the issue when it meets next, said Erskine.